Chapter 11 Green Chirp-Chirp Gui Banjing

　　The orchard and the spirit-plant garden were adjacent, separated by a tree-lined avenue and an energy field to prevent pollen from certain plants drifting across.
　　Perhaps because of the route they had taken, they had not encountered anyone in the spirit-plant garden just now. But the moment they entered the orchard, they ran into someone crouched in a tree picking blossoms.
　　“Major General.” The man was also a Sentinel. He sensed Major General Sain and the others approaching, immediately jumped down from the tree, and gave a perfectly straight salute.
　　Wei Yin’s gaze swept across the sword-ray emblem embroidered over the man’s chest. He was dumbfounded. “The Founder’s Personal Guard?”
　　Shangyang: “Mm.”
　　Wei Yin: “The Founder’s Personal Guard comes here to farm?”
　　Shangyang: “Even the God-of-War Major General Sain has been forced into recuperation. Why can’t his Personal Guard farm?”
　　Wei Yin: “…” Impossible to refute.
　　Major General Sain nodded to the man, then gestured toward Wei Yin. “Madam.”
　　The man immediately bowed to Wei Yin as well. “Madam.”
　　Wei Yin’s body snapped taut, then relaxed again. “…” That was close. He had almost returned the salute.
　　Major General Sain signaled for the man to rise, then asked, “What fruit is ripe?”
　　The man smiled with a somewhat honest, simple air. “The strawberry fruit is ripe, and some cherries are ripe too.”
　　Major General Sain nodded. “Bring me a basket. I’ll pick some.”
　　“Yes, Major General.”
　　The man ran off and soon returned from a small building beside the orchard with a fruit basket. It was a basket woven by hand from dried vines, something rarely seen in the present day.
　　Major General Sain carried the basket in one hand, took Wei Yin’s hand with the other, and led him deeper into the orchard.
　　Strawberry fruit was a mutation of original-species strawberries. Wei Yin had seen them in supermarkets before, where a single fruit cost thirty star credits—and that was the cheapest kind. But this was the first time Wei Yin had seen a strawberry-fruit tree. The trees were short, the tallest only reaching his waist, and their branches were heavy with red fruits the size of a baby’s fist. Moisture gleamed on their skins in the sunlight, making them look like little candied apples coated in syrup.
　　There were quite a few people picking fruit among the strawberry-fruit trees, while small animals ran back and forth through the field. The scene was lively.
　　Wei Yin stared at the thin-skinned, plump fruits and swallowed with an audible gulp.
　　Immediately, that low laugh suppressed in someone’s throat sounded beside his ear again.
　　“Major General.” At that moment, someone noticed Major General Sain’s arrival and greeted him warmly.
　　There were old people and children among them. They were probably the descendants Major General Sain had mentioned, of the people who remained in the plantation during the Battle of Ten Thousand Beasts. Once one person greeted him, the others came over too, though they did not crowd around him; greetings simply rose and fell from every direction. The little animals running everywhere, however, all rushed at once to rub against Major General Sain’s legs. Only when they came close did Wei Yin realize that although they had looked small from a distance, they actually reached his knees.
　　“Major General~ So many people came from outside today. I don’t like them. When are they leaving?” one of the little animals asked in the clear, childish voice of a young child.
　　Wei Yin: “…Yangyang.”
　　Shangyang: “Beastfolk.”
　　Wei Yin: “Oh.”
　　Major General Sain bent down and stroked the little beast’s head. “Tonight.”
　　The children did not understand, but the adults knew the reason behind the wedding. They quickly steered the conversation away from those unwelcome guests and called out to Major General Sain. “Did you bring Madam to pick fruit? Perfect timing. We haven’t touched the patch up ahead yet. The fruit grew especially well this year. We were just saying we’d bring some to Old Housekeeper Charlie later so he could make juice for you.”
　　Major General Sain smiled at them, exchanged a few more pleasantries, then led Wei Yin farther ahead.
　　Looking at the sincere smiles on their faces, Wei Yin could not help sighing inwardly. “My Major General’s personal charm is no joke!”
　　Shangyang: “…” He’s already “my” Major General now?
　　Major General Sain brought Wei Yin into the field and taught him hand over hand how to pick the fruit.
　　Strawberry-fruit skin was soft and thin, but fresh fruit had resilient skin that did not break easily. Holding one after picking it felt like holding a water balloon, heavy and satisfyingly full in the hand.
　　Unable to resist, Wei Yin tentatively gave the strawberry fruit in his hand a gentle squeeze. The little dent sprang right back, with a pleasingly bouncy texture.
　　Wei Yin’s eyes widened, and he could not resist squeezing it again.
　　Then Wei Yin heard Major General Sain laugh again. This time he was standing very close, directly behind Wei Yin. Because of their difference in height, the air from his breath brushed the back of Wei Yin’s ear. The laugh became a soft breath of sound that passed through his eardrum and struck deep into his soul. Wei Yin shivered involuntarily, and the rim of his ear immediately turned red.
　　A tingling, electric numbness crawled up Wei Yin’s spine. Before he could recover, Major General Sain, standing behind him, reached out in a posture almost like an embrace. His hand came around from below and completely enclosed Wei Yin’s, his five fingers pressing over Wei Yin’s five. He applied light pressure and made Wei Yin squeeze the strawberry fruit once more.
　　“Fun, isn’t it? I liked squeezing these when I was little too.” Major General Sain squeezed only once, then guided Wei Yin’s hand to place the strawberry fruit in the basket. “But once you pick them, you can’t squeeze them for too long. Otherwise the flesh turns soft and mushy, and they won’t taste good.”
　　Wei Yin: “…” Thump. Thump. Thump.
　　Shangyang: “…” Maiden-pink. Rolling maiden-pink. Surging, rolling maiden-pink everywhere.
　　Major General Sain helped Wei Yin pick several fruits, then brought him to the edge of the field. He drew a cup of water from a robot, washed one strawberry fruit clean, and held it to Wei Yin’s lips.
　　Major General Sain: “Fresh fruit tastes very good. Take a bite.”
　　Wei Yin stared at the fruit right in front of him. It was very close to his lips, but Major General Sain had not actually pushed it into his mouth. Clearly, he wanted Wei Yin to open his mouth himself.
　　The sweet fragrance of strawberry fruit drifted over. Wei Yin blinked, and eventually his eyes shifted slightly toward Major General Sain.
　　Major General Sain smiled gently and coaxed him again. “Go on. It’s very good.”
　　Wei Yin sensed no danger. At last, his tightly pressed lips parted, revealing white teeth, and he carefully nibbled at the strawberry fruit’s soft skin.
　　Just then, however, an abrupt voice rang out.
　　“Major General Sain.” Kalida had found them from somewhere and called over, “I’m sorry to disturb you. But it’s time for Young Master An to take his medicine.”
　　Wei Yin’s open mouth immediately pressed shut again. Fear flashed through his eyes, but he quickly emptied his gaze and became the wooden puppet that showed no response to the outside world once more.
　　Major General Sain’s expectation came to nothing. His brows drew together slightly, but he ignored Kalida and moved the fruit closer anyway, feeding it into Wei Yin’s mouth. Wei Yin mechanically bit off a piece and swallowed it almost whole without chewing much.
　　Seeing this, Major General Sain stopped feeding him. He only stroked Wei Yin’s face, wiped away the juice at the corner of his mouth, and said, “You can have more tonight.”
　　Then Major General Sain straightened and finally turned toward Kalida. In the time it took him to turn around, every trace of warmth vanished from his face. His eyes were as cold and emotionless as a machine.
　　“Who allowed you in here?” Major General Sain said coldly, his tone stiff and openly impolite.
　　Kalida stood five meters away, yet still felt as though the point of a blade had been pressed against the skin over her heart. Without realizing it, she stepped back once, then again, until she had retreated to the far side of the ridge between the fields. Only then did the sense that she was about to die finally fade.
　　Kalida was covered in cold sweat. She worked for a while to steady herself before forcing her voice to remain controlled. “I’m very sorry, Major General Sain. Young Master An…”
　　“Major General’s wife,” Major General Sain abruptly corrected her. “He is no longer the An family’s young master.”
　　Kalida seemed to hear another meaning in those words, and her expression turned ugly.
　　Major General Sain had no intention of caring. “Wait at the villa. We’ll come over shortly.”
　　Kalida bit her lip, but in the end did not dare say anything more. She turned and left.
　　After Kalida left, Major General Sain decided to talk to Wei Yin. He asked tentatively, “Wei Yin, are you very afraid of Kalida?”
　　Wei Yin remained blank and unresponsive.
　　Because Shangyang was making an X inside Wei Yin’s head. “Today’s performance is over. From now on, stay a wooden puppet. That’s the only way to show how strongly Kalida’s appearance affected you.”
　　Wei Yin: “Understood, Director Yang.”
　　Shangyang: “…”
　　Sure enough, no matter what Major General Sain said afterward or how he coaxed him, Wei Yin gave absolutely no response.
　　Half an hour later, Old Housekeeper Charlie approached from the distance.
　　Charlie’s expression was grave, his eyes lowered, all the lively old-prankster energy from the morning gone. He looked like an old radish that had been pickled too long.
　　“What is it?” Major General Sain took Wei Yin’s hand and led him up onto the ridge.
　　Charlie said quietly, “Major General, Mr. Hera says he is waiting for you and Madam in the sitting room.”
　　Major General Sain’s expression changed instantly. Even the atmosphere around him became frightening in an instant, as though day had become night and early spring had turned into deep winter.
　　Seeing this, Wei Yin wondered inwardly, “Mr. Hera… as in that Hera family?”
　　The Hera family was also an ancient noble house. It had one special distinction: it was the family that traditionally intermarried with the Sains and had even once been called “the Sain family’s brides.” So although the Sain and Hera families had rarely married after the founding of the Empire, their blood ties remained hopelessly tangled.
　　Shangyang: “Mike Hera. In terms of generation, even Major General Sain has to call him Grandfather.”
　　Wei Yin: “Ah, I’ve seen him in the news. He’s also a member of Parliament.”
　　Shangyang: “Probably not only that for much longer. Aren’t Parliament and Cabinet about to hold their next elections?”
　　Understanding suddenly flashed through Wei Yin. “So this marriage between the An and Sain families was arranged behind the scenes by Mike Hera? Two founding clans, one family with real political power in the Empire, and one Federation business-tycoon family. Truly, ‘four families join hands and the world is ours.’”
　　Shangyang: “Instead of spending energy gossiping about that, you might want to worry about what medicine Kalida is preparing for you right now.”
　　Wei Yin: “What do you mean?”
　　Shangyang: “Charlie said Mike is waiting for the Major General and you. Why do you think he specifically wants an idiot like you brought along?”
　　Wei Yin: “Why?”
　　Shangyang: “Kalida belongs to the An side. Major General Sain sent her away, which embarrassed the An family. On a day like today, Mike has to make some show of sincerity toward them. So if Mike is calling for both of you now, he’s obviously coming to put Major General Sain in his place. And the method will probably be tormenting you to kill the chicken and warn the monkey.”
　　Wei Yin: “…What?!!”